"You aim at a devout life, dear Philothea, because as a Christian you know that such devotion is most acceptable to God's Divine Majesty," says St. Francis de Sales in his book "Introduction to the Devout Life".
And we can all be Philotheas, as St. Francis notes: "I have made use of a name suitable to all who seek the devout life, Philothea meaning one who loves God."

Friday, May 11, 2012

"Ecumenism" and The Chancellor

Here’s some news
from the Catholic Sentinel of the Archdiocese of Portland (H/T to faithful
blog-reader Bill; all emphases are
mine) about Archbishop Chancellor Mary Jo Tully:

Featured on the Archdiocesan
website, as well.

Leaders of statewide religious
organizations gathered this week in Portland to honor Mary Jo Tully,
archdiocesan chancellor, for her efforts in promoting unity and cooperation among religious groups.

After receiving the prestigious
ecumenist of the year award from the 150-member congregation- umbrella group of
Christian, Muslim and Jewish congregations, the indefatigable
Tully used the occasion to urge a return to civility in public discourse.

Hmm. Well, good for her…I guess. But I thought ecumenism was
about bringing unity to the Christian
church. The Vatican II document Unitatis
Redintegratio (UR; Decree on Ecumenism) says:

The restoration of unity among all Christians is one of
the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council. Christ the Lord founded one Church and one Church only. However, many Christian communions present
themselves to men as the true inheritors of Jesus Christ; all indeed profess to
be followers of the Lord but differ in mind and go their different ways, as if
Christ Himself were divided. Such division openly contradicts the will of
Christ, scandalizes the world, and damages the holy cause of preaching the
Gospel to every creature. (par. 1)

I have a problem with the way “ecumenism” is often propounded,
promoted, and practiced these days. Generally, “ecumenism” sounds to me like
the kind of wimpy, groveling, conciliatory stuff we hear all the time about
everyone getting along and loving one another and being free to worship in
their own way, etc. I formed the impression some years ago that “ecumenism”
actually means denying our Catholic identity when talking to non-Catholic
Christians. It all sounds like a good way to foster the Protestantization of
the Catholic faithful.

Some Catholics – including pastors of parishes – seem to think
that “ecumenism” means that we join the local Protestant churches for a sunrise
service on Easter morning in some nearby picturesque meadow. And yet UR states explicitly:

Yet worship in common (communicatio in sacris) is not to be considered as a means to be
used indiscriminately for the restoration of Christian unity…Witness to the
unity of the Church very generally
forbids common worship to Christians, but the grace to be had from it
sometimes commends this practice. The course to be adopted, with due regard to
all the circumstances of time, place, and persons, is to be decided by local
episcopal authority… (par. 8)

So, yes, there is the usual allowance for “pastoral concerns”…another
misused, if not abused, concept in today’s struggle to convince others – even Catholics!
– that the Catholic Church is indeed the one,
true Church. (So…how’s that been
workin’ out for us?)

Let’s face it: the Archdiocese of Portland is hardly a
bastion of Catholic orthodoxy – not by a long shot! We see parishes blatantly
condoning homosexual behavior and participating in “gay pride” parades; and I
have personal knowledge that at least one priest’s efforts to provide the
extraordinary form of the Mass have been squelched by the powers-that-be (and there’s
a lot more to that story). Then there was that first Holy Communion Mass
described by my friend…

So while Ms. Tully is apparently good at “ecumenism”, she
seems to neglect the effective catechesis of the faithful of the Archdiocese of
Portland. Moreover, she seems to have some off-kilter ideas about the Truth.

“The most basic divisions in our society may
well be between those who insist on splitting the world into polarized camps
and those who do not," the author-theologian-newspaper columnist and
teacher told the packed ballroom in a downtown hotel.

Sadly enough, the world is split into polarized camps. Those
who don’t acknowledge this simply want things their way, and they call those who disagree “divisive”. I know. I’m
“divisive”. Ms. Tully continues:

“Ecumenism is an approach to
reality that insists that truth is
seldom discovered in isolation but through dialogue in community."

I think there’s a great danger in “discovering” truth
through “dialogue in community” – especially if the Catholics involved are not
well-versed in the teachings of their own Church, are not well-versed in logic,
and are not able to identify absolute Truth.

Ecumenism is a common battle
against error and not a fight among
partners in dialogue based on
the assumption that one is already right
and one wrong, she added.

Well… I think it’s a given that the Catholic Church is
right. Deviations from the Church are wrong, though I suppose there are “degrees”
of wrongness. And UR notes:

Nevertheless, our separated
brethren, whether considered as individuals or as Communities and Churches, are
not blessed with that unity which
Jesus Christ wished to bestow on all those who through Him were born again into
one body, and with Him quickened to newness of life – that unity which the Holy
Scriptures and the ancient Tradition of the Church proclaim. For it is only through Christ's Catholic Church,
which is "the all-embracing means of salvation," that they can benefit fully from the means of
salvation. (par. 3)

That sounds like UR is
saying that one “partner” is, in fact, “already right”, and one is wrong.

The
purpose of ecumenical “dialogue” is to bring differences to light and to ultimately
bring the errant non-members of the Church back into the fold. The purpose is not
to “discover” some other “truth” that allows Protestant denominations to
maintain their separated state.

And last but not least, go ahead and take a look at
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon’s website.
As you explore, you will find out that it’s another leftist, liberal, “justice
and peace” (another code phrase for “liberal politics”) group that supports
Obamacare, believes in global warming, justifies “Occupy Portland”, supports liberal
immigration reform, etc.

From the EMO website:

Public Witness &
PeacemakingEcumenical
Ministries of Oregon is committed to a vision of the world in which there is no
suffering, injustice, violence or exploitation. We have faith that such a world
is not only possible but is our responsibility to help bring into being. EMO
advocates in communities statewide to create systems, institutions and public
policies that ensure a life of possibility for all Oregonians. EMO's current
public policy priorities include policies concerning hunger, poverty,
affordable housing, work supports such as child care tax credit, farmworker
needs, labor's right to organize, health care, the death penalty, campaign
finance reform, discrimination, and separation of church and state.

And yet, in a most interesting
note attached to the above paragraph says:

The
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland releases all public policy statements
through the Oregon Catholic Conference. For more information about the
Oregon Catholic Conference priorities, call (503) 234-5334.

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My husband and I live in Baker City, Oregon. I care deeply about the liturgy, and pray ardently for the "reform of the reform". I think we've strayed far from our Catholic identity over the last 50 years, and we need to return to the traditional teachings of the Church in order to regain lost ground.